The Asia Cup 2025 has been marked by controversies alongside the on-field action. A significant incident occurred during the group stage match between India and Pakistan. Indian players did not shake hands with the Pakistani team. This situation also affected the Pakistan-UAE match, which began with a delay of an hour. Furthermore, the Pakistan Cricket Board faces serious allegations of violating tournament protocols. In response to these events, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has made a significant decision.
To mitigate the tension arising from the high-profile India-Pakistan match, the ACC has taken a major step. The ACC has issued new guidelines to journalists, instructing them to avoid political questions during press conferences. This decision aims to calm the atmosphere between India and Pakistan. The press conference following the handshake controversy last Sunday saw Indian journalists posing pointed questions, putting the ACC’s media department in an awkward position.
Prior to the press conference with Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav before the match against Oman, an ACC media officer explicitly requested Indian journalists to refrain from political inquiries. The ACC’s media department is already under scrutiny for its handling of the controversy. The situation worsened when UAE captain Muhammad Waseem was repeatedly questioned about Pakistan’s delayed arrival at a match earlier in the week.
Meanwhile, a senior ICC member raised questions about the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) conduct. They questioned why the Pakistani team did not participate in the mandatory press conference while the team was taking part in a practice session. This press conference was scheduled to take place before the match between Pakistan and the UAE, but no one from the Pakistan team attended.
